AIADMK defends Governor's refusal to read Govt speech in Assembly

CHENNAI: All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK) general secretary Edappadi Palaniswami on Monday said that Tamil Nadu Governor RN Ravi refused to give customary address in Assembly as his suggestion was "ignored." "Governor requested National Anthem should be sung in the beginning of the session along with Tamil Anthem. As his suggestion was ignored he refused to give a customary address," Palaniswami said.

He further called it an "issue between the governor and the government."

"This is an issue between the Governor and Government - Speaker. We are an Opposition Party. You have to question the Tamil Nadu Government and Speaker about their issues," Palaniswami said. BJP MLA Vanathi Srinivasan said the Governor has all the rights not to read out statements but for that speaker's unnecessary speech is condemnable. However, the DMK camp hit out at the Governor over his refusal to accept the government's customary address.

DMK spokesperson TKS Elangovan said, that policy of the state government is given to the Governor to read in the customary speech and questioned the Governor's actions refusing to read them out.

"He doesn't know where Tamil Nadu is. He must first find out where Tamil Nadu is because for the past 25 years the Tamil anthem was the first thing that was sung in the Assembly before the Governor's address. And then finally the national anthem will be sung. That has been the practice for more than 20-25 years since the Tamil anthem was introduced. Who is he to agree with what is in the Governor's address?," Elangovan said while speaking to ANI on Monday.

Drawing parallels with the presidential address in Parliament, Elangovan said that the party running the government decides on what the address is.

"The policy of the state government is given to the governor to read it out in the assembly. Whether he reads it or not, let become part of the assembly proceedings. It is the party which is running the government which has made certain promises to the people who have elected them. It is for them to decide on what the address is," the DMK leader said.

"Even in the parliament, the presidential address is prepared by the government cabinet, not by the president. He is already being mocked by many people. He's becoming a joker," he added. Tamil Nadu Law Minister Regupathy criticised the Governor's actions in the Assembly and alleged that it was "somebody else's act".

"In southern states only the Governors are behaving like this in other states there is no such activity, if he has any objection on the address he can call secretaries and get clarity from them," Minister Regupathy said. "He (RN Ravi) has walked out of assembly before national anthem was sung First we sing Tamil thaai vaathu (State anthem) and then at the end we sing national anthem. Even last year we have given a clarification on this matter this has been the tradition from the past. It is not his (R N Ravi) own act it is somebody else," he added.

Earlier in the day, the first session of the year 2024 of the Tamil Nadu Assembly saw unprecedented scenes when Tamil Nadu Governor RN Ravi refused to read the customary address prepared by the Government on "factual and moral grounds."

The Governor refused to accept the customary address prepared by the government and said few remarks which were later expunged from the Assembly records. Governor Ravi then walked out from the assembly before the session concluded and without waiting for the customary singing of the National Anthem.

Tamil Nadu assembly speaker M Appavu responded to the Governor's remarks which was also later removed from Assembly records. After this the Tamil Nadu Assembly passed a resolution considering the Governor's address as fully delivered including those portions that were not read out.

Similar scenes were witnessed last year on January 9 2023, Governor RN Ravi had walked out in a rush following the adoption of a resolution moved by Chief Minister MK Stalin which sought to expunge, from house records, whatever the Governor spoke outside the customary government-prepared address.

Soon after the Governor completed his speech, a resolution to exclude a certain portion of the speech of the Governor was adopted by the Assembly, which had then prompted the Governor to leave the assembly in a hurry.